Graduate Certificate Program in Electronic Commerce

The Internet and World Wide Web are having significant impacts on the way people interact with each other, with government, and with business. The Graduate Certificate Program in Electronic Commerce is intended for people who are interested in the use of Internet-based technology by people, government, and industry. We are witnessing the emergence of e-Tailing, e-Government, e-Business, Business-to-Business applications that are transforming our society. The impact of electronic commerce is also being felt across international boundaries where it affects the management and administration of international business. The goal of the Certificate Program in Electronic Commerce is to study the concepts, tools, policies and underlying technology that enable Internet- and Web-based applications.

Admission Requirements

Applicants to the certificate program in electronic commerce must meet the following requirements before admission into the EC certificate program:
  1. Hold a four-year (120 credits) baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution.
  2. Have earned a grade point average of 3.0 or better in the last 60 credits of undergraduate study.
  3. Submit a departmental self-evaluation form, which can be obtained from the department. This form provides summary information concerning background and preparation for the program.
  4. Provide a brief (one- to two-page) statement of educational and work experience in the computing field that includes a statement of career goals.
  5. Show proof of a satisfactory score on the Graduate Record Exam (GRE), if required. The test should have been taken within five years of applying for admission. ISE has the following policy with regard to the GRE. The test is required for each applicant unless the applicant
    • has an undergraduate degree in science or engineering from a U.S. university and graduated with a GPA of 3.0 or better in the last 60 hours; or
    • has a graduate degree in a related field from a U.S. university; or
    • has been admitted as a non-degree student and meets all the following requirements: has an undergraduate degree from a U.S. university, has an undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or better in the last 60 hours; and received at least a B in all foundation courses taken at GMU or elsewhere.
  6. Submit the appropriate application form with three letters of recommendation from persons directly knowledgeable of the applicant's professional and academic competence.
  7. TOEFL for international students.

Applicants must possess knowledge equivalent to the following four Mason courses, which are considered foundation courses:
  • INFS 501   Discrete and Logical Structures for Information Systems
  • INFS 515   Computer Organization
  • INFS 590   Program Design and Data Structures
  • SWE 510   Object-Oriented Programming in Java

Applicants must also possess equivalent knowledge of
  • INFS 612 Principles and Practices of Communication Networks
  • INFS 614 Database Management
  • SWE 619 Object-Oriented Software Specification and Construction
  • SWE 620 Software Requirements and Specification
  • SWE 621 Software Modeling and Architectural Design
  • Or the prerequisite courses required for the selected electives.
For those students not enrolled in a Mason graduate degree program, application for the EC certificate program is made through the Graduate Admissions Office of the Volgenau School. Students enrolled in a Mason graduate degree program should contact the ISE Department for admission into the certificate program.

Admission to the certificate program does not guarantee admission into any MS program.

Certificate Requirements

Certificate candidates must complete five courses, with an average grade of B or better, for a total of 15 credits of graduate study.

To obtain the certificate a student needs to complete the following:
  1. Two required courses
    • INFS 640   Introduction to Electronic Commerce
    • INFS 770   Knowledge Management for E-Business
  2. Three courses from the following (Electives have been organized into concentrations, but students may mix and match elective courses subject to satisfying course prerequisites)
    • Information Security
      • ISA 562   Information Security Theory and Practice
      • ISA 656   Network Security
      • ISA 767   Secure Electronic Commerce
    • Database Management
      • INFS 755   Data Warehousing and Mining
      • INFS 760   Advanced Database Management
    • Internet Software Engineering
      • SWE 632   User Interface Design and Development
      • SWE 642   Software Engineering for the World Wide Web
      • SWE 645   Component-based Software Engineering
    • Health Medical Information Systems
      • HSCI 678   Introduction to US Health Care Systems *
      • HSCI 720   Management of Health Information Systems
      • HSCI 722   Tele-health and Electronic Commerce in the Health Industry

* This course may be waived by a person with experience in Health Care Systems Management and Permission of Instructor.

For Further Information

Additional information on the program is available from the ISE Student Advisor

Financial aid information is available at the GMU Office of Financial Aid

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Effective Fall 2007
 Go to Certificate in Electric Commerce (General)  EC (General)
 Go to Certificate in Electric Commerce (for MSEC students)  EC (for MSEC students)
 
Master programs  
 Go to MS-ECOMM  MS-ECOMM
 Go to MS-IS  MS-IS